Europe still has a high demand for protein imports for food and feed production. This makes food production technologies based on the principles of the circular economy and the Green Deal increasingly relevant. One solution is to search for alternative protein sources to reduce dependence on traditional fish meal.

The ProRMAS project is currently conducting one of its main experiments at the Aquaculture Competence Center of the Klaipėda Science and Technology Park (KMTP), testing experimental shrimp feed. Scientists from the project partner Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) developed this feed, which is unique in that some traditional ingredients have been replaced with sustainable alternatives. The feed uses green macroalgae (Ulva lactuca), and some fishmeal protein has been replaced with polychaete worm protein.

Three types of feed are being tested

The experiment is being conducted in 12 tanks. During the study, three types of feed are being tested: control feed with fish meal; feed in which 50% of the fish meal protein has been replaced with polychaete protein; and feed in which the fish meal has been completely replaced with polychaete protein. Each type of feed is tested in four tanks, with 50 shrimp in each.

The experiment will last five weeks. At the beginning of the study, the shrimp weigh an average of about 12 grams. It is expected that by the end of the study, their average weight will be about 25 grams.

Shrimp were not chosen for the ProRMAS project by chance. Demand for this seafood product remains extremely high in Europe, but local production is limited. European shrimp production is around 500 tons per year, and some countries, such as Italy, are almost entirely dependent on imports. In contrast, Litopenaeus vannamei shrimp farming in recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) is becoming a growing industry in Germany and Lithuania.

The goal is to transform waste into raw materials

However, traditional RAS systems have one major drawback: dissolved and solid nutrients, as well as the resulting sludge, often go unused. This increases the system’s inefficiency and costs. The ProRMAS project aims to implement circular economy solutions in saltwater shrimp aquaculture to create a closed cycle where waste becomes raw material for new production.

In this system, sludge formed from shrimp waste and uneaten feed is used to feed polychaete worms. This process converts organic waste into an alternative source of protein suitable for feed production in a closed cycle.

Health indicators are used to assess feed efficiency

Controlled feeding trials are conducted to determine the suitability of alternative proteins for shrimp nutrition. During these trials, growth and health indicators of the experimental animals are monitored, including survival rate, changes in weight and length, feed conversion efficiency, and stress response indicators. All trials and laboratory tests are conducted in the research systems and laboratories of the KMTP Aquaculture Competence Center.

The study’s results are expected to contribute to the development of more sustainable feed and justify the use of alternative proteins in aquaculture. This will reduce dependence on imported raw materials and increase the potential for environmentally friendly, local shrimp production in Lithuania and Europe.

About Green ERA-Hub (GEH):

The Green ERA-Hub is a Coordination and Support Action under Horizon Europe that brings together relevant ongoing and self-sustaining networks in the Agri-food and biotechnology sectors. It represents a significant part of Europe’s national ministries, funders, and research institutes, providing transnational co-programming of national research priorities and funding, organising joint scientific research, knowledge valorisation, and science-policy dialogue activities.

More information about Green ERA-Hub: www.greenerahub.eu

“The project ProRMAS was carried out under the Green ERA-Hub, a Coordination and Support Action (CSA), funded through the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation (R&I) programme under Grant Agreement No. 101056828.”.  

This international research and development project is supported by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Lithuania, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research of the Federal Republic of Germany, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry of the Republic of Italy.

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